Saturday, August 11, 2018

Bob Orlando passed away 2 yrs ago on this date. Bob Orlando lost his long fight with Lou Gehrig’s disease.

Bob Anselmo OrlandoLakewood, ColoradoOct 26, 1944 - Aug 11, 2016

As tribute, I'm archiving his "Author of the Month" entry from the now defunct Paladin Press.

PALADIN PRESSAuthor of the Month

BOB ORLANDO -- September 1996

Bob Orlando was introduced to the martial arts while on active duty in the U.S. Marines (1961-1964). However, it was not until after he left the service that the flicker of interest kindled overseas became his consuming fire and he began serious study in Chinese kenpo-karate. Shortly thereafter he switched to kung fu, studying under Al Dacascos (who was then teaching in Denver, Colorado) for three years until a back operation made it impossible to continue in that high-kicking style. It was back to Chinese kenpo, where Bob received his first-degree blackbelt from Dr. John P. Cochran. Although Bob has subsequently earned additional rank, he prefers to say that he is a student of the arts and leave it at that. "Rank," he says, "is excess baggage. It becomes a hindrance to learning because everyone expects that you already know everything."

Ever a student of the arts, Bob's quest for knowledge has taken him into aikido, iaido, arnis de mano, and escrima. However, what has impacted him the most are the years spent studying Chinese kuntao and Indonesian pentjak silat under Dutch-Indonesian master Willem de Thouars. After nearly 12 years of training with de Thouars, Bob received his teaching certificate from him in 1994. He now owns and operates his own martial arts school in Denver.

In addition to authoring Indonesian Fighting Fundamentals: The Brutal Arts of the Archipelago, Bob, a graduate of a Jesuit university, has also written numerous articles for both national and local publications and has just completed his second book, Martial Arts America: A Western Approach to Eastern Arts, which he expects to have published sometime next year.

No longer a tournament competitor, Bob still supports tournament and sport karate. As a founding member and past director of the Colorado Karate Association (CKA) -- a nonprofit organization that works to provide competitors with a positive tournament environment -- Bob believes that the arts' sporting element still provides training benefits for the serious practitioner. He currently serves as one of the CKA's top referees.

Although he is not a "professional" martial artist, Bob, a computer professional for more than 30 years, still considers himself a "full-time" martial artist, because he studies and trains constantly. His school is a small one, and that's just the way he wants it. "Our school is our laboratory. There, we test everything from the practicality of forms training and techniques to the latest craze in self-defense. We have a formal curriculum -- from white to black belt -- but it is not set in stone. For us, the concrete is never quite dry."

Of his own abilities, Bob says, "I have many skills. After nearly three decades in the arts, I ought to. But my skills came not because of any natural talent, but because I worked very hard to get to where I am today. My fortés are my analytical mind and my ability to share what I know with others. I take the complicated and make it simple. I am a teacher."

An experienced seminar presenter, Bob is available for seminars and may be reached by email at borlando@amoco.com.

Stickgrappler's Note: I am guessing the Paladin site will be shut down at the end of the 2017 year and I'm archiving select Paladin Press pages to my blog to preserve an essential part of martial arts from 1970-2017. Archiving some of the Paladin "Author of the Month".

Thursday, August 09, 2018

Let’s say you wanted to be good at fighting but did not want to study a martial art. What would you do?

As I mentioned earlier, I did a few things as a kid that made me a good fighter and I didn’t realize it.

I marched in a HS band, football games and parades. Those parades were from 3-5 miles long as I recall. The Macy’s parade is 5.5 miles. We marched in a relatively flat location in Tidewater, Va. I played a trombone which is not easy to play loudly and not light to carry for that long. We also dressed in wool uniforms with parade dress shoes and plumed hat. We were also required to ‘high step it’ when marching especially since the trombones were in the front. This gave me good cardio and increased my lung power (intercostals and diaphragm).

Around the age of 15 I built a log cabin about 10’ by 12’ about six big logs high, and dug out the floor to have an underground part. I used a hand axe, not a long axe. It took a couple months of daily chopping, dragging, digging and notching. I didn’t realize how much forearm strength it would give me, it was something I did for fun. Very good for shoulders and forearms and grip.

I delivered papers on a regular bike, I think one-speed with a huge basket on the front. It took about forty minutes to deliver them, but I had to pedal about 1/2 mile to pick them up and then 1/2 mile back. That gave me leg strength and added to my ‘wind’.

I lived near a wooded area so we were always climbing trees. I was the best at the rope climb in gym class.

So, I would say to build a fighting base, work on the following:

Overdevelop the forearms, calves, shoulders and neck (to absorb strikes?). Forearms and hands give you extra grip-fighting capability. Calves give you the ability to be explosive. Shoulders allow strength in striking and also endurance to hold your hands up in guard. Practice some kind of jumping, even if sandlot basketball.

Work on method to develop your cardio in the five ranges, and include burst, which is explosive ability for a few vital seconds. You can get this sprinting up hills, dragging a weighted sled and pedaling a bike uphill. (You also improve your lung power when playing a brass instrument).

Play games. Frisbee, basketball pickup games, any running games, tag, or volleyball or soccer in school. This gives you ability to change direction and start and stop.

Learn some kind of dancing. Again, that gives you cardio without really noticing it. It gives you rhythm and timing. You also get rhythm by playing a musical instrument. You get exposed to grace notes and subdividing the beat. This is good for broken rhythm.

Use handheld tools. We played stick fighting and chopped trees and dug underground forts and shoveled snow and cut grass.

What about grappling? Well we grappled and wrestled as kids but without a lot of guidance. I did a semester of wrestling in grade school and junior high so I had an idea of what to do. I’d say this is an area where you most need some formal training. It’s reasonable, say around the age of 15-18 to get some BJJ training and to work on takedowns and grip fighting.

So without all of the formal martial arts stuff, bowing and kata and trying to kick high, you’d be a pretty formidable fighter when needed, though you might not win any formal championships, but again, how many people really need that. I was just living the life of a kid and young adult in the 1950s, 60s and 70s.

It’s about building layers. Some attribute development through other base training, some focused work with a goal is needed. You might also need to have a role in mind, a temporary person or idea you put out there as a beacon or idol. But later you become your own hero.

Site Under Construction

Slowly but surely I've implemented changes to the site's look and functionality. I'm sure you have noticed the changes.Ecstatic that I've finally been able to successfully update my site closer more in line with my vision of it.

Not sure if it will be the final look of the site or not, but the Sojourn of Septillion Steps with respect to the site's look has already taken quite a few steps beyond the first!

I will still be endeavoring to put up information I think will benefit your martial arts training as well as your self-defense. I sincerely thank you for visiting/reading!